Coffee-Coconut Cupcakes

 

Ingredients:

150 mL sugar
1 egg
75 g (80 mL) cooking oil
2 tsp baking power
2½ tbsp plain flour
125 mL coconut milk
1½  tbsp soluble coffee powder
2 tbsp dessicated coconut powder

Topping

25 g dark chocolate, melted on double boiler
Some chocolate rice
Some dessicated coconut powder

Method:

Preheat oven to 180 °C.

Line 8 foil cupcake molds with a paper mold each; set aside.

Dissolve coffee powder in coconut milk; set aside.

In a deep bowl, beat egg with sugar till thick, pale and fluffy.

Pour-in oil, beat to incorporate.

Sprinkle-on flour and baking powder and fold into homogenous batter.

Stir-in coffee flavored coconut milk and whisk thoroughly to mix.

Stir-in dessicated coconut powder.

Pour batter evenly into the prepared molds, place on baking tray, bake for 25-30 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the middle of cake comes out clean.

Remove from oven.

Pour-on pre-melted chocolate on top of each cupcake the sprinkles-on immediately with chocolate rice and coconut powder.

Serves 8.

Steamed Chinese Sponge Cake with Palm Sugar-Coconut Filling

Ingredients:

Sponge

160 ml (3) eggs
80 ml sugar
drop of green food coloring
drop of pandan essence
enough flour

Filling

1/4 cup palm or molasses sugar
1 cup water
1/2 cup dessicated coconut

Method:

To prepare filling:

In a small pot, bring water to boil.

Add-in sugar and stir to dissolve.

Add-in dessicated coconut, stir continuously till water almost dried out.

Remove from heat and set aside.

To prepare sponge:

Lightly grease enough muffin tins (about 6); set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar-coloring-essence till pale, light and fluffy.

Gently fold-in flour one spoon at a time till batter level sinks to 80% of total height.

Spoon enough batter (about 1 ½ tbsp) into the prepared tins and steam over high heat covered for about 5 minutes.

Remove cover and spread on a layer of prepared filling in the middle of cake.

Spoon-on another layer of batter all over on top of filling surface and steam covered again for another 10-15 minutes.

Remove from heat and run a thin flexible knife or spatula around the tins to loosen the cakes.

Remove cakes from tins by inverting on palm and transfer onto serving plate.

Spread the remaining filling on top of each cakes and ready to serve.

Plum Snow Skin Mooncakes

Ingredients:

2 cups glutinous rice flour
1/4 cup wheat starch
1 1/4 cups icing sugar or brown cane sugar
20 g butter, softened
60 mL cold water
1 tbsp plum sauce

Mung Bean Paste Filling:

1 cup mung bean, soaked overnight
2 cups water
20 mL milk
1 tbsp butter, softened
50 g dark chocolate (optional)
1/2 cup brown cane sugar
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup desiccated coconut/freshly shredded coconut
40 mL milk/coconut milk (only if using desiccated coconut)

Method:

Mung Bean Paste Filling:

In a bowl, mix desiccated coconut with milk.

Toast in a preheated oven at 180 °C for 15 - 20 minutes or till fragrant and golden yellow (stir occasionally for homogeneous toasting).

Remove from oven, set aside to cool completely.

Bring water to boil, add mung bean, continue the boiling till mung bean is softened, cooked thorough and became almost dry (not to burn).

With blender, blend together the cooked mung bean with milk.

With double boiler, melt chocolate, add into mung bean paste.

Mix-in butter and sugars, stir till sugars are dissolved and well-incorporated.

Add-in toasted coconut flakes, stir well to evenly mixed.

Keep in refrigerator till uses.

Plum Snow Skin:

Place glutinous rice flour in a heat resistance plate, steam over high heat for 30 minutes.

Remove from steamer.

Dry-fry the flour over moderate heat for about 15 minutes (alternately, toast in a preheated oven at 160 °C for 45 minutes, stir occasionally; or microwave on high for about 6 - 8 minutes, stir well after every 1 minute) or till yellowish in color.

Sift the cooked glutinous rice flour together with wheat starch, set aside.

In a bowl, beat butter with sugar till thoroughly mixed.

Add-in plum sauce, stir to mix thoroughly.

Add-in flours and gradually pour-in water, mix to a soft and smooth dough.

Keep in refrigerator to set for an hour or more.

Mooncakes Assemblies:

Flour snow skin mooncake moulds with cooked glutinous rice flour; set aside.

Divide dough into 4 portions.

Lightly knead each dough and form into a ball.

Flour both hands with cooked glutinous rice flour, flatten dough and shape to cup on palm.

Fill-in enough mung bean paste, wrap to seal and roll to a ball again.

Place the filled dough into the prepared mould (seam side up), press firmly to conform with the shape of mould.

Bang the sides of moulds to dislodge out the mooncakes.

Chill in refrigerator till serve (preferentially for at least few hours or overnight before serving) .

Kuih Seri Ayu/Puteri Ayu (Snowy Mountains Mini Cakes)

Ingredients:

2 eggs
Sugar half of eggs by volume
1/2 tsp ovallet
2 1/2 tbsp flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
small pinch of green coloring/1/2 tsp pandan (fragrant screwpine) paste
Oil for molds greasing

Coconut Topping:

1/2 cup desiccated coconut/fresh grated coconut
1 tbsp water/coconut milk
1/2 tsp corn flour
1/4 tsp salt

Method:

Dissolve salt and corn flour in water, pour over coconut and mix well.

Lightly grease molds with oil.

Press-in 1 heap tsp of coconut mixture into the base of molds (add more as desired), press firmly with finger; set aside.

Mix flour with baking powder; set aside.

In a large bowl, whisk eggs with sugar, ovallet and green coloring till pale, thick and fluffy.

Fold-in flour mixture, stir batter to incorporate.

Spoon batter into the prepared molds.

Steam covered over high heat for 8 minutes.

Yield 12 mini cakes.

Molten Dark Chocolate Cupcakes (Flourless)

Ingredients:

200 g dark/bittersweet chocolate
250 g butter
3 eggs
1 egg yolk
1/4 cup sugar
2 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
Confectioners' sugar for dusting

Method:

Preheat oven to 230 °C.

Lightly grease 6 foil cupcake molds and coat surface with a thin layer of bread-crumb.

Via double boiler, melt chocolate with butter, remove from heat and set aside.

In a deep bowl, beat eggs, yolk, sugar till thick, pale and fluffy.

Fold warm chocolate-butter mixture into the eggs mixture, whisk to incorporate.

Whisk-in cocoa powder.

Pour batter evenly into prepared molds, place on baking sheet, bake for 10-12 minutes, or until cakes have risen, possess a thin crust, set at outer part and slightly jiggly in center.

Remove from oven, let sit for 1 minute with mold.

Use a plastic knives, loose cakes side from mold's wall.

Carefully invert cake onto hand then place on dessert plate.

Dust top with confectioners' sugar and serve warm immediately.

Serves 6.

Kuih Bahulu

Ingredients:

1 cup eggs (3 eggs yolks + 4 egg whites)
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp baking powder (optional)

Method:

Sieve flour together with baking powder, set aside.

In a deep bowl, whisk eggs and sugar until thick, pale and stiff.

Preheat oven to 250 °C.

Lightly grease mold.

Fold-in 3/4 tbsp of flour mixture into 4 tbsp of stiffed eggs batter (prepare just enough for a batch), stir batter to mix.

Spoon batter into the prepared mold (fill-up to 80% in volume).

Bake batter in the preheated oven for about 6 minutes or until puffed and golden brown.

Remove from oven and let cool completely before storing.